THE DAIRY SCHOOL.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 118, 11 February 1908, Page 6

THE DAIRY SCHOOL.

MINISTERIAL VISIT TO FEILDINQ; , -' THE DISTRICT'S ADVANTAGES* SPEECH BY MR.' M'NAB.. (BY TELEGRAPH—BPECIAIi CORRESPONDENT.) , Feilding, February 10. ' The Hon. R.Jl'Nab, (Minister for Lands)' arrived at Feilding by the mail train to-day on his 1 official visit to inspect tho district ,regarding its suitability as a sito for tho. Ex-\ perimental Dairy School. The Minister was' met at the station by Messrs. F. Loth- , bridge,. M.P., J. W; >B. Trewin (Mayor of Feilding), A. H. Atkinson (President of tho Chamber of Commerce), E. H. Crabb (Chairman of tho Kimbolton Branch of the Farmers' Union), Pirani.,(Chairman of tha ■Wanganui Education Board), E. Short (Vice-Prcsident of tho Manawatu A.-and P. Association), E. Goodbehere. (Chairman of the Feilding Technical School. Committee), J. Knight (representing the Feilding A. and , P. Association), G. C; Wheeler (Chairman Oroua County Council), W. T. Bowater and' E. J.' Waokrell, with whom he afterwards - lunched.' ' . , ' ! The Minister and party paid a visit to the'Teclinical School J and were shown over, the building by the Chairman of .the Education Board. Mr. M'Nab had the use of the different rooms explained to himi and it was pointed out how helpful the building would be in conjunction with, a dairy school. , , After Muuch at Hastie's, tho party left by. motor cars for the Cheltenham Dairy Faotory, where tho Minister was'interviewed by a deputation desirous of the Government acquiring Mr. E. J. Riddiford's property there for closer settlement. Tho part then proooeded to Waituna, and'after being entertained at . afternoon tea by Mrs. E. Short, werit to Mr.--Ft ••'¥. Lethbridge's a't : Makino, where the proposed site for the Dairy School was inspected. Therfe, also, the views of a deputation were laid before the Minister. Afterwards Mr.-E; Short'took tho Minis-', ter. to Wanganui- in his: motor ear, under-' taking to, the.run jn an houn FEILDING'S CL'AVMS URGED. V Mr;.' Pirani i-was', the spokesman foi' tlwi dairy school deputation. He pointed out that he believed that Feilding : was eminently .fitted for..the establishment of a dairy school for many. reasonsi,., It y iyos _ the natural, centre or one of the! finest''dairying districts' in the Dominion, ' having'.ai radius of 30 miles, and including the cpunties of.'Orou'a, Mariawatu, Kiwitea, Kairanga,' and Pohangina, in every one of which there were dairy factories and creameries already established, with a promise of very m&ny more. It was recognised that another advantage possessed by Feilding was the building specially erected for a technical school which was to be fitted

up with special regard to scientific instrua j tion. ; In vconnection.L ,witli : . the : technical school .the use of several sections of land be< r longing to the Railway. Department, and at' present unoccupied, could'- probably, be' arranged for, and jjvould. give t tihosacoommoda<• v tion required for the school., . The Wanganui Education Board had.;6een.i successfully, conducting dairying instructiori-' clnsses throughout the district-of. late, and'the result had' proved that there was n.considerable demand tor scientific education in dairying. It was hardly necessary to enumerate tlio dairy factories and creameries already established in the district, as the Minister must be aware, through his, Dopartipent. of the number ana wide range of country they .covered. It was .difficult to get at"'the exact output of butter and cheese from the factories in the district, but approximately.it;might,be. put down at 2000-tons in the season, which wiuld. mean the output of some 22,000 cows, of a.capital value, of fully £125,000. .. .There was no intention on, tho part of the deputation: to set Feilding'i against any ; other: placed but they felt sure' thit; the Minister must feel that .the arguments in'/favour of a dairy scliobl were Very weighty. They were deeply liq6hbridge's spontaneous offer of 50 acres of land for the establishment of the school. ■ ■ •': ' , . " > ■■ " • THE MINISTER JN REPLY. . In his'.reply, Mr. : M'JTab thanked tho deputation for , having, enabled him ' to get so wide a vie>y of, the district-. , Ho could not be expected ,'to say.at.once, just what tho final ,'decision would ho with regard to the school. That' decision would not bo made until his report had .been ,-Jaid before ..the , proper authorities; which ■ would -ho in the course of a;few days.;; He,realised : that his .task was made much. moro .difficult by.' tho princely, {generosity'-,':.which., characterised 'tho offers . made for 1 sitesyn different; parts of tho Dominion.'-: It ..was very, pleasing to himself'and the other members of the Government:to see/! the great interest, that had been; taken inj;he? sohool,: because, it showed how ,P9rtanco of .the proposed-step-was ■recognised. , It was''possible that the school of instruction might . develop into, a peripatetio institution, hut he would say: npthing now that, would projudico the \final result 'of the establishment of. tho ..school. : He. was ready to say

that no' country had done what Now Zealand had done ii} regard; to the dairying industry. ; Thoy .could' not see far'enough ahead to say, that. ( tho dairy school, would not shift, Gut he ; 'thought .it .'a very advisable, experiment to .establislj this schools As the work developed I thoy . could go in-for,;tho extreme form of .education,- : . and l even., take in bacteriological , ivorlc. He hoped', to sco the. day. when tn< .work' would , bo,' of, such- magnitude r and sc complete m its operations that he would be ablo to challenge ,th? work done at any simi . Inr. institution outside . tho United . Kingdom , 'aiid the. United States.. proposed to ; .establish this experimental station and school 1 ••'of,;instruction for general benefit. At first a L foelin£ was in the minds : or the officers that f tho school :should- bo for the managers'of . dairy factories all over the country, to be in ■ operation during the winter months, but as a result,of:maltingJinquirifis.'in other parts of 1 tho world, they decided to havo for their object the training of all: who; intended to devote themselves to" the work of managing dairy factories.' A-systematic, courso of in- ■ structibn'i. would be given . .taking, tho, students through the elementary, part-of their .'trade and giving" them instruction, such ps would 'taise..that, trade to' tho .dignity ,of a profession. '''This could ■ only be. done by attention to',tho, soieritific' .sfdo,,df ; thp /question; ; The question,' he, pointed, out, with,pleasure, was not a:' party one/; and tho Government intended. to do what .'was best for the State, He felt ,perfectly confident.that wherever the school was placed/it would mean an immens* gain to the'.dairying industry.,: '.i, ; Tlio Minister was thanked for his courtes; and attendance. .